Let’s get this out of the way in which first…
That the Mets will enter the 2022 season with Jacob deGrom on the IL due to a shoulder harm — with deGrom presumably out till round June 1 — is distressing and positively casts a pall over Opening Day.
And the hamstring hiccup Max Scherzer dealt with on the heels of the deGrom news did not assist issues. Nor did the knee issue that Taijuan Walker had on Tuesday.
Some Mets followers are extremely involved, which is comprehensible. Fandom is emotional and at occasions irrational. And Mets followers are additionally scarred by current seasons which have been derailed by accidents, together with 2021. However what the Mets are going by now isn’t a nightmare, and the sky isn’t falling.
The sky definitely may fall. However that’s the case for each workforce within the sport except for maybe the Los Angeles Dodgers, whose depth is laughably good.
It also needs to be famous that relating to the Mets’ ultimate 28-man roster, they’re anticipated to enter the season with 27 of the 28 gamers who have been initially projected to be on it. The one one lacking might be deGrom.
Now, relating to the Mets and the present state of the rotation, nuance is required — as is a glance again at what occurred final season (particularly within the second half) and why this season is totally different.
Had Scherzer not been briefly bothered by a hamstring problem that was at all times considered as minor, odds are that the extent of concern proper now amongst followers wouldn’t be practically as excessive as it’s. And with Scherzer now anticipated to pitch Friday, it seems that problem is about to be behind him if it is not already.
So far as Walker, he stated Tuesday that the knee problem he is coping with is a results of numerous current work on his mechanics/decrease half. And he expects to make his first common season begin as scheduled.
Other than the current hysteria over Scherzer and Walker, there was some shouting concerning the Mets doubtlessly resorting to a bullpen sport on Opening Day (one thing they are not going to do). However even when they’d determined to, it would not have been due to an absence of depth. It might’ve been achieved to maintain everybody on schedule.
Talking of the Mets’ beginning pitching depth, here is what it presently appears to be like like:
Max Scherzer
Chris Bassitt
Carlos Carrasco
Taijuan Walker
Tylor Megill
David Peterson
Trevor Williams
That is so much totally different than lat season.
Carrasco in fact missed the primary 4 months of final season, whereas Peterson missed the final three months. Megill was an afterthought till midseason, and Williams was a commerce deadline acquisition.
Are there considerations about among the above pitchers? Certain. However once more, you’ll find considerations with just about any workforce within the league besides the Dodgers.
For a reminder of the beginning pitching mess the Mets discovered themselves in final 12 months — particularly within the second half — let’s check out among the pitchers who began video games for them (not together with the bullpen video games):
Jerad Eickhoff
Robert Inventory
Robert Gsellman
Corey Oswalt
Jordan Yamamoto
To reiterate: The start of this season isn’t the second half of final season. That is not solely due to Scherzer, however due to Bassitt, who will for now slide into the No. 2 spot behind Scherzer with deGrom out.
For the primary six-to-eight weeks of the season, the Mets may have Scherzer and Bassitt atop the rotation as a substitute of deGrom and Scherzer. And as is famous above, the depth behind the highest two is a hell of so much higher this season than it was final season.
The large query mark clearly revolves round deGrom. Particularly, when will he return and how much manufacturing may be anticipated when he is again?
SNY spoke with a sports surgeon to get insight on deGrom’s injury and prognosis, and the principle takeaways from the surgeon have been {that a} full restoration was “by far the most likely outcome” and that deGrom’s velocity and command must be unaffected.
Within the unthinkable state of affairs the place deGrom does not make it again this season, the Mets will very possible flip to the commerce marketplace for reinforcements.
However for proper now, the Mets are simply tremendous within the beginning rotation. And even with out deGrom in the meanwhile, they nonetheless have what it takes to be extremely aggressive in what must be a really robust NL East.
